Well, count me as another one who got sucked in into this one…..or in all honesty, one who couldn’t pass up a bargain. So thanks to all who have posted with all the good info. And, especially Peter, who started this great thread. Peter, if you’re ever in Boston, there will be a couple of Kane’s donuts for you.
I bought the light from the eBay seller listed by Peter in post #57 ($26). I got the charger (without car adapter) and the TrustFire 4000mAH 3.7V batteries ($22 and $14, respectively, with shipping) from LIION Wholesale, as listed by Jim in post #29 and Don in post #65.
Now, some of observations from playing with this light as it relates to what others have posted.
Unfortunately, mine will not see action in salt water until November, but it did ace the kitchen sink test. I will put in my BC pocket for the salt water test on shallow dives off of Montauk this summer.
I’ve observed the same shoddy workmanship as others have, but I keep reminding myself that this is a $26 toy. As noted by Jim and by Don, there were burrs, dirt, oil, and/or chips on the threads. This puts the O-rings at risk because O-ring removal and reinsertion requires that they pass over the threads. I did some light filing to remove the burrs. I followed with a wire brush, then cleaned the threads, O-ring grooves and the corresponding sealing surfaces with acetone and then water.
My light doesn’t have the small glow in the LEDs when in the OFF position as noted by Jim in post #42, but it flickers as I turn the end cap. My gut feel is that we both have faulty ON-OFF switches, but the light itself works fine otherwise, so I’ll live with the flickers.
I view the front cover lens seal – as noted by Spoolin01 in post #32 - as a weak link as well, even tho many have dived with the light without any issues. The only advantage that I see in the current design is that you can easily replace the cover lens. I’m thinking of maybe running two beads of rubber sealant around the lens and making it part of the front screw-in cap, similar to the one-piece caps on dive lights such as the smaller Princeton-Tecs that you turned on by screwing the cap in. I would also add an O-ring just behind the threads. By doing this, I think that I’d gain a second line of defense against leakage into the reflector and LED assembly.
This light will make a good dive light, I have no doubt. Others have already noted the long burn times and it is brighter than any of the lights I’ve ever had: UK-600R, Brightstar and my current Sola.
Whether it makes a good video light – I’m not sure. It is wide enough but the triple “halos” or gradations in brightness is less than desirable unless maybe shooting very tight macro. Putting a diffuser in front of the lens helps – something like a piece cut out of the plastic diffuser panels they use on hung ceiling fluorescent lights.
